BENFICA will know exactly what they're in for on Wednesday. They've been here twice before, and I remember their last visit in 1984 particularly fondly.

I scored a hat-trick at Anfield in a 3-1 victory. I recall it being a soggy night on Merseyside when I managed to slide in on the end of a few crosses to give us the victory we needed.

It turned out to be crucial because we lost 1-0 in Lisbon a fortnight later. It was the second successive year we'd beaten Benfica, and I had the pleasure of reminding the man who was managing them during that period when I spoke to him last week.

For those who can't remember, it was Sven Goran Eriksson, who admitted our side was one of the best he's ever come up against.

Clearly there are similarities this year to the 1984 tie and I'm sure Rafa Benitez would be over-joyed if one of his strikers left the ground with the matchball on Wednesday.

After the last few weeks, a goal from any source would be welcome.

There was more frustration against Charlton, but we all know it will be entirely different in midweek.

Liverpool the team and Anfield as a venue comes to life when the odds are stacked against the club.

Ronald Koeman can try to prepare his players for what's in store, but it doesn't matter what's said before kick-off, the Benfica players will feel unsettled if The Kop is at its noisiest.

Koeman is experienced enough to warn his side they'll be facing the biggest test of their careers, but you can never know what it's like until you've been through it.

As far as I'm concerned, Anfield was a key factor in the club's Champions League victory last year.

Juventus hardly strung a pass together for 35 minutes when they played here, and it was at least 25 minutes before Chelsea knew what hit them in the semi-final.

I don't believe Benfica are in the same class as those sides, so the first 30 minutes could be crucial this week.

This is the part of the season when we'll see just how good Liverpool are. There have been a lot of improvements, but this is the time in any campaign which really matters as we head towards the climax when the silverware is handed out.

As a striker, a lot of people have been asking me what the Liverpool forwards are doing wrong.

It may sound strange, but I actually think they may be trying too hard in some cases.

There's a case for ordering at least one of the partners to concentrate solely on hanging around the box and forget about some of the unselfish work.

I know it's important, particularly in away games, for the striker to be the first line of defence.

At Anfield it's a bit different because teams sit back and flood their defence.

In the last few weeks I've felt the forwards have done too much good work in deep areas. By the time crosses come, there aren't enough bodies to get on the end of things.

Despite the goal drought, I feel reasonably confident Liverpool will get the result they need.

Although there is a lot of emphasis on winning by two goals, the first task is to make sure they win at least 1-0 after 90 minutes.

That would be enough to take the game in extra-time, so there's no need to hit the panic button early.

The main thing is to score first, whether that's in the first minute or last, and take it from there.

If Liverpool do so, I'm sure we'll be looking forward to another quarter-final at Anfield in a few weeks.